Breaking Free
by IncognitoRecognition
Summary: How could he have found out so soon? She was so careful. No one but the Death Eaters would know, the Dark Lord had said. Then again, there were more pressing issues on her mind than Snape knowing. Like Dumbledore knowing. And being locked in Azkaban won't help her become better in the Dark Lord's eyes... {AU. Hermione is a Death Eater} EVENTUAL HG/BL. Probably abandoned.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: A Trip to Azkaban

It had been a few minutes after her friends were ushered out of the Headmaster's office. After they left, Dumbledore had seemed to realise that he had forgotten to remove her wand from her person. She didn't want to be completely vulnerable, but she had no choice. _Hand over a fake wand?_ No chance. He would recognize it in an instant, and if he didn't, Snape would. _Hex him? _Hex him. Her subconscious had stooped so low. A clearing of a throat broke her concentration. 

"I do believe that Albus asked for your wand..."

"Yeah, of course. It's a wonder I've kept it for this long, you know? The staffing at Hogwarts is really that terrible, is it?" A sharp glare from the scowling Potions Master caused her to role her eyes and extract a wand from the back pocket of her robes. She extended a pale hand towards Dumbledore and he deftly plucked it from between her fingers.

"The Aurors will be here in a matter of minutes, Albus." She felt scared all of a sudden. _Azkaban? I'm not that brave! I'll go insane in a few weeks..._ Her breathing picked up, until she fainted.

O-O-O-O-O

Bellatrix's cell had been solely occupied by her since her imprisonment. So when she was informed of an inmate, she was surprised. The guards refused to mention names, they didn't even tell her to her face! They slipped her a note along with her morning porridge. Even magically made it was foul. Not that she expected amazing food, she was in prison after all, but she imagined being allowed to have toast. She missed toast. It was weird that she missed it; she'd never much indulged in it when she was free. Now that she was imprisoned, she missed everything. From her arranged husband who she never loved, to torturing captured mudbloods.

Walking around to the back of her cell where the Dementors couldn't find her, she broke her stony resolve for just a moment. She allowed the tears to fall on her face for one time in forever. But as soon as they began, they stopped. She couldn't allow her new cellmate to see her in a rare moment of weakness. She straightened her back and sat against the wall, waiting.

O-O-O-O-O

She recovered almost instantly, or so it seemed to her. The Aurors were just flooing in when she awoke anyway. She almost felt regret for what she had done. _Almost. _She still wanted revenge on Weasley and Potter for always making her feel less than perfect. _Friends were meant to stick together. _

"Wotcher, Hermione!" Tonks greeted enthusiastically. "So where's this new-found Death Eater we're taking away?" The last part seemed to be directed more towards Dumbledore, but it was answered by Snape anyway.

"Miss Granger," he shuddered slightly, "Is your new-found Death Eater…" Tonks and the rest of the Aurors faces was so perfect she nearly smirked despite herself. _Self-control, mudblood. _One Auror even raised their wand at her, but no hex flew from the wand. She didn't recognise the Auror at first, but when he winked at her, she knew exactly who it was. Lowering their wand, he turned to the others and inclined his head towards the floo. One stunned her, and she blacked out for the second time that day.

O-O-O-O-O

His guise as an Auror worked, and she knew who he was. He had arranged things ahead of time so she would be imprisoned with Bella. Granger and Bella had several things in common, and he knew that Bella was fed up with being alone from all the visits he had made because of Narcissa. Bella wouldn't be too happy with sharing a cell with Granger - someone who she believed to be a Mudblood – at first, but Lucius hoped she would accept Granger eventually. Bella wasn't one to accept people, but he hoped she would put that to the side. Her and Granger were on the same side now, weren't they? Not that he thought that would cause them to get along.

He had decided earlier that he would be the one to introduce Bella and Granger. No one else would do. Bella would attack, he knew that, and he was sure that Granger would know that the second they met. _Thank Merlin for their wands being confiscated. _His sharp grey eyes snapped onto Granger's attire. Gryffindor robes, obviously. It would not do to be imprisoned in Azkaban while wearing them. He flicked his wand with the grace of a Malfoy and some Muggle clothes appeared. Granger's size, obviously.

O-O-O-O-O

She was glad that Lucius was there for her. She never thought that she would ever be allowed to think that, but times had changed. Everyone knew, _how they knew, _the day after it happened was a mystery. He had kept a friendly arm around her during the Apparition to Azkaban, and even organised for her to share a cell with another Death Eater. She was also annoyed with him. _Bellatrix Lestrange? A cell with… her? _But she knew it was the best she could have gotten, quite possibly.

They stunned her to take her to her cell. It wasn't a surprise to Hermione; they couldn't risk her escaping, could they? Bellatrix was asleep in her cell when Hermione was _Ennervated_ awake. Quite probably Lucius' doing, but she didn't mind. She had been asleep the entire time, so the Dementors hadn't taken a toll on her yet. Still, the second she awoke she felt depressed. _Why'd you leave them? _Her mind wasn't making much sense to her, but she needed to get her snappy sarcastic wit back before Bellatrix awoke for their first meeting.

It took her less than a minute to realise she was shaking in her sleep. _Poor Bellatrix, _was all she allowed herself to think before snapping back to her usual alert self. _She could kill you with her bare hands. Without hesitation too. _She shrugged that thought aside, as Bellatrix shrugged herself awake. Dreary eyes, filled with no emotion stared unblinking at her for a full minute before Bellatrix grunted and grabbed her head and pushed it towards the stony ground of the cell. _So this is why no one shares cells here._ Her head connected with stone and she blacked out for the third time that day.

O-O-O-O-O

Her friends would die eventually, but not by her hand. The Dark Lord was to finish them off, maybe letting someone else deal with the 'Blood Traitor.' Once upon a time she did believe that she loved him, but now… It was obvious, to her at least, that it was purely platonic. _For the both of them. _So that was that, and she would not let _emotional attachments _hinder her. She did not _really _want her friends to die, except one thing _was _for certain. And she didn't like it.

Harry Potter would die.

O-O-O-O-O

AN: Sorry it took so long to get this out, but I hope you enjoyed it regardless. I'd like to thank Danigirl84, MelodiDam and PAULA FOREVER for putting this story on their alert list. :D!

Until next time, au revoir!

**Edited 9/2/15 with part of another chapter – this is the new chapter one. Thanks to IllegitimatePrincess' suggestion, the previous 'Chapter One' will be a flashback in the next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: A New Cell-Mate

Part of her mind was screaming at her. _She's your Death Eater cell-mate._ But Bellatrix didn't much like jokes. _The Granger mudblood? Fat chance. Great joke Lucius. _But the longer she stared at the blood pouring out of her head, the more she realised that she could have just killed an ally. She normally didn't care about that, so why was she feeling remorse now? For a mudblood no less. _Emotions. _Bellatrix scoffed silently in disbelief. _She was incapable of feeling. _No, that wasn't true. What she felt for Rodolphus certainly wasn't platonic, or something she felt for many people. _But that's not love. _

There was no doubt in Bellatrix's mind that she loved Rodolphus, but was she _in _love with him? She didn't think so. Maybe she _was_ incapable of feelings. Not all feelings, obviously, she felt something for Rodolphus, and maybe even her Lord, but most feelings. _Are there more people out there like me? _I never used to be like this. Has Azkaban changed me in a different way than it changes others? All those that came out of Azkaban were insane, and most certainly incapable of feelings, but none seemed soft. _Soft. Yes, that was the word for it. _What would the others think? Just thinking about that made her shiver, so she gave up on thinking. Not daring to spare a glance towards the injured girl on the floor of her cell, she curled up and fell asleep.

O-O-O-O-O

It wasn't hard to notice that Granger was in pain. Even Bellatrix, who was terrible at reading facial expressions, could tell that. The worst part was, that even with all that Azkaban had helped her feel again, she felt no remorse. _Should she? _The answer to that was obvious. Yes, she should feel bad for knocking someone unconscious, _someone she would be in close proximity to for the remainder of her time in Azkaban, _but she didn't. She also didn't want the Granger girl to notice she was awake, and watching her struggle to sit up. Granger's shaky hands were so evident, it looked like her hands had been subject to a jelly-leg jinx. _Why is she shaking so? _She didn't exactly want to know, but she couldn't deny her curiosity. She knew never to indulge curiosity. _Curiosity killed the cat, but it also killed the Death Eater. _She'd been subject to so many _crucio's _during her brief moments of curiosity, she wasn't likely to invite another.

Just then, Granger glanced towards her, and she snapped her eyes shut. She didn't open her eyes again for fear of being noticed, but her thoughts never ceased. Not until she fell asleep again, at least.

O-O-O-O-O

Spots filled her vision when she came to. _Bellatrix. _She felt a pang of annoyance at the elder witch. She ignored it. _I do have to be stuck with her until the Dark Lord breaks all of us out. _It wasn't a feeling easily ignored, but she tried her best. _For the Dark Lord. He wouldn't be too happy if you killed another Death Eater, now, would he? _So she held her tongue, and withheld from choking the woman in her sleep. She flinched slightly as she put weight on the hand that she had fallen onto when she collapsed. She crumbled under the pain, and gingerly tried the other hand. She was able to sit up slowly, but surely. She almost stood up to get herself a drink of water from the Hogwarts kitchens. Habit, she knew, but it still made her slightly sad to think of Hogwarts. And Ron and Harry would be missing her. Or maybe not; she had basically told them to piss off the last time they spoke. _The last time they spoke. _She cringed whenever she thought of that event. _I could have handled everything so differently. In a much more Slytherin way. _But the past was in the past, and the most she could do while locked up in her cell was wish that the boys would still think of her and smile, rather than scowl. Wistful thinking, she knew, but it couldn't hurt much. Occlumency had been her friend for the better part of a year, while she was still debating on when to reveal her true nature.

Revealing her true nature had quite possibly been the biggest mistake of her life. _But it was also the best decision of her life. _She couldn't decide if it had done more good or bad to her, and if it was worth it in the long run. She thought not, but couldn't be sure. She certainly regretted it now. Well, most of it at least. She couldn't pinpoint exactly which parts she didn't, though. She glanced over at Bellatrix to double check if she was really asleep. She couldn't have Bellatrix knowing that she was so weak, she couldn't even stand up. She could have sworn that she saw her eyes snap shut when she looked over, but the black eyes stayed screwed tightly closed, so she blinked a few times to make sure she wasn't seeing things. She didn't feel right, somehow, lying in a stone cell. Surrounded by Dementors, and a lady who could surely torture her to make her more insane than the Dementors could. Then again, she couldn't think of a situation in which that _would _make her feel right.

She decided that she would do a whole lot of sleeping and thinking while in Azkaban. It was the only thing she _could _do, ruling out the reading and chatting and laughing with friends that would be her usual idea of fun. The only way she could do that was to become friends with Bellatrix Lestrange, and that could never happen, could it?

O-O-O-O-O

And so their routine for what seemed like many days was to be asleep, or at least pretend to be, whenever the other was awake. It was rather difficult, always having to check if the other was up and about before moving, but they both liked it that way. When the food came by, they would leave out half a portion for the other. In this way, they became a form of acquaintances. At the very least, they had no more violent discussions, or any discussions at all for that matter. Neither of them could see a reason for wanting to change their routine. But neither of them were exactly _Seer's, _were they?

AN: Thanks so much to everyone who reads this, and an extra special thanks to Lady , MirAndy93, jadzjewels, vileniaveladorn, Carollouren, FyrBornRayne, MysticalFae and TaintedFlare for adding this story to their alert list, thanks to cree011 and Meggymoo12 who added this to their favourites list, drgonlance36 and swishdregs, who favourited and followed this story, and Darkmatter2001 who favourited and followed this story, and favourited and followed me! :)

Also, I think I mentioned this in the beginning, but in case I didn't, Azkaban is changing Bellatrix in a different way which makes her act softer, and thus slightly OOC. Keep that in mind through-out the story. I think that the first chapter doesn't really make much sense (in my mind) when it comes to how I want the story to play out, so I might put up a completely different version of that chapter at some point. Changing the description when I do that too; I don't like Hermione being a pureblood as it turns out. I'm just not creative enough to expand on that.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 – Trials and Broken Routines

The day that their routine was broken was an unusual day by most circumstances. It started with them being awake at the same time. Neither of them had been able to sleep with the other looming over for the past few days, so they decided to ignore that rule for a while. At the very least, until both of them could sleep again. They still did not acknowledge one another at all, and that would probably not change for a while if they had any say in the matter. They didn't, but they didn't know that then.

The next way it was broken was by them communicating. Yes, the very thing that they had decided against just an hour or so ago. It wasn't by them saying a quick 'good morning' or 'how are you', no. It was Hermione's trial that day. They were awoken by the very person who had organised for them to be in the same cell; Lucius Malfoy. One of them was thrilled to have him there, but the other despised him. Hermione hugged him and thanked him profusely for sorting her into a cell with a fellow Death Eater. The word _fellow _confused Bellatrix. It was then she realised her instincts were right, at first, in saying not to attack her. _She's your Death Eater cell mate. _She remembered them saying.

Hermione seemed to have conveniently forgotten the first meeting of the two, so Bellatrix decided that she would do the same.

"So what are you doing here, Malfoy?" She sniped at him. She was never on good terms with the eldest Malfoy, and that had only intensified when he had not offered her any support while in Azkaban. Sure, sure, putting her in a cell with Granger probably classified as 'helping,' but it sure didn't feel like it.

O-O-O-O-O

It was decided by someone that I would be the one to collect Granger from her cell in Azkaban. An _anonymous _someone. Whoever it was, he didn't care. All that mattered was he could talk to her and Bella. Mainly Bella; he needed to explain to her about Granger. He knew she wouldn't like Granger now, and not for a while certainly, but he needed her to tolerate her.

The trip to the prison was bearable, at the most. They couldn't apparate, floo, or even portkey, so they had to take a boat. The boat was moulding at the edges, and a few planks from the bottom were missing. A few charms sorted that out, but the water still licked at his body when he was near the edge. The boat was rocky the entire way there, and the escort threw up on him.

A cleaning charm took clear of that, but he still sent sneering glances at the other occupant. The trip took a few hours, but when they arrived he was relieved. The same escort gave him directions, and left. When he got there, they were awake. Granger hugged him, and whispered _thank you, thank you. _At her words, he noticed Bella standing slightly behind her. He nodded slightly in greeting, and she slighted her head in his direction.

"So what are you doing here, Malfoy?" She asked, somewhat rudely. They did not like each other much, and he was forbidden to give support to Bella while she was in Azkaban. Lucius thought that intensified the hate even more. He could never be sure, though.

"Breaking you two out," he remarked sarcastically. "I'm to take Granger to her trial." The shocked looks on both of their faces caused a smirk to break out onto his face.

"I get a trial? But why?" She was in shock, apparently. How juvenile. He was prepared to let it slide for the time being; he did like the Granger girl. She would prove a powerful ally.

"Of course," was his silky reply, "but the trial's verdict is already decided, you know that, right?"

She nodded shakily. "I'll be imprisoned for bearing the mark, no matter if they can find proof if I did anything or not." And that, is the definition of a bad trial.

O-O-O-O-O

She didn't know what came over her when Lucius got there. _What made her hug him? _But he didn't seem to mind, so she left that thought in her mind to ponder on another day. She began to Occlude for the first time that day. She wasn't very good, and her defences were shaky, but she didn't need to keep anyone out. Except perhaps the Dementors, but she was so used to keeping them out it was like second nature.

Bellatrix was still hovering near her when Lucius left for a minute to get the key to unlock the cell.

"Hey, mudblood." It was the first words they'd spoken to each other before. Their first spoken greeting. She lifted her head and stared at her.

"Enjoy being free, even if it's only for a day or so." She smiled readily that time, and Bellatrix seemed to flinch.

"Thanks." Bellatrix looked as though she wanted to say something else, but at that moment Lucius came back and extracted her from her cell.

"Time to go, Granger. Say goodbye and goodnight to Bella." But the moment of speaking was past, and they both knew it. She merely inclined her head in Bellatrix's direction, and left with Lucius.

_Enjoy being free. Enjoy being free. Enjoy being free…_

O-O-O-O-O

A/N: As always, thanks to everyone for reading! I'm really sorry about the first chapter being third in order… I was a bit confused, and I apologize. If any more things like that happen, I'll try to notify it in the next chapter A/N. If you want to read the updated first chapter, look for Chapter One in the index. I hope this doesn't cause too much confusion.

Special thanks also to:  
Dustin Jamason for favouriting :)  
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lua solo for following :)  
Bella0018 for reviewing, and following both the story and me :)  
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MelodiDam for reviewing :)  
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Lionhead Z.J for following :)


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Did You Miss Her?

The boat didn't look stable. That was her first thought when she noticed it. Then: are they trying to kill us all?  
"It's okay, Granger. I travelled on this coming way out here." That was a bit reassuring.  
"But there was only two of you last ti-"  
"You'll be alright." That was the guide's short tone. He sounded rather annoyed at her, but he did give her a kindly look, which made up for it ever so slightly. Lucius and the guide, who Lucius had introduced as Montague, climbed gracefully into the boat. She stumbled in after them, and Lucius started the boat with his wand.

Bellatrix's words still repeated themselves in her head. Over and over; _enjoy being free. _Did they mean something? Something special, or important? The boat rocked her into a dreamlike state, where she dreamt of Bellatrix and her words. _Why, oh why do they keep echoing through my head? Is it the fact that she spoke them? Or do they mean something? _With that thought in mind, she drifted off to sleep.

O-O-O-O-O

Lucius woke her up when they arrived at the Ministry docking station. Montague spelled her hands behind her back.  
"Granger?" She looked up at Montague in confusion. "You've been spelled the entire time." She gives a small nod, and he and Lucius stand on either side of her, before marching her in through the doors.

The courtroom was spacious, with the Minister, Rufus Scrimgeour, in the middle of the crowd that would decide her fate. They all looked down at her with disdain clear in their eyes, and she nearly froze mid-step. But she kept on walking. Strutting, if you would. Giving a slightly haughty look around the room, they sat her on the chair stationed in the middle of the room. After the two tied her hands to the arms of the chair and gave her a slight dose of _Veritaserum_, Scrimgeour cleared his throat. Veritaserum had been made legal when it came to questioning, simply because the Minister didn't have the time, what with the war starting up again, to question anyone.

"We are gathered here today to discuss the sentencing of one Hermione Jean Granger. She is charged with being a Death Eater, and participating in the rape, torture, and eventual murder of two Muggle families, each with four members. Do you object to any of the charges?" He directed the last part towards Hermione, and she nodded briefly;  
"I did not rape, nor kill, any Muggle families."  
"Do you object to the torturing?"  
"No."  
"Wha-"  
"Charge suggested by the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister – life in Azkaban, and the Dementor's Kiss," Dolores Umbridge cut in.  
Scrimgeour glared slightly towards his undersecretary, before posing his question again.  
"What spells, curses, jinxes, charms, or hexes do you admit to using, and what transfigurations?"  
"I transfigured a chair into a knife-"  
"Did you use this knife on the families? If so, how?""  
"Yes. I stabbed each person twice in the leg, and cut off the hands of two."  
"Continue with the listing of enchantments used." Hermione recited a list of dangerous and harmful enchantments, ending with the sharp ring of her voice saying "Lumos."

O-O-O-O-O

Bellatrix was bored. It had happened frequently, back before sharing a cell, but lately she had had Granger to stare at, she had come up with different circumstances as to why she could be in Azkaban considering the state of her and her clothes. But now that Granger had gone to trial, it was back to how it always had been. Wallowing in her own self-pity, reliving terrible moments in her life. She did not dare to exercise the thought that she missed _Granger, _no, she just missed the company. That was all. Right?

O-O-O-O-O

The trial had flown by, and Hermione was in the boat back to Azkaban. Lucius hadn't spoken to her, or acknowledged her existence since she'd been sentenced to life. True, they hadn't had a moment to, but he had been ignoring her.

On another note, she was dreading when they would arrive back at Azkaban, and she would only have someone who ignores her completely for company. Bellatrix was better than no one, but with her ignoring her, it seemed like no one. She just wanted someone to say "good morning" to in the morning, "good night" to at night, and someone to talk to in general, but Bellatrix wasn't that kind of person. She wasn't a talking person, she was an acting person, unlike Hermione.

O-O-O-O-O

The boat pulled up at Azkaban late at night, and Hermione turned to Lucius.  
"This is goodbye, for a while, isn't it?" He refused to meet her gaze, but nodded the affirmative. Rolling her eyes, she let Montague lead her back to her cell. Bellatrix was curled up into a small ball, but she sprung to her feet in a fighting stance when they got there. She lowered her arms and stood normally, however, when she saw it was just Hermione, before sitting down on the cold, stone floor.  
"Well?" She drawled. Hermione sighed.  
"Life. I'm not even surprised." She sat down next to Bellatrix, who scooted away from Hermione's body to lie spread out on the ground.  
"Did you miss me?" She said, sarcastically in Bellatrix's direction. She snorted in response. "Of course not." Chuckling, Hermione lay out, far away from Bellatrix.  
"'Night." She said. Bellatrix grunted, and she smirked.

O-O-O-O-O

When Granger had asked if she had missed her, the automatic response was "of course not", but she had missed her, or her company, at least. But Granger didn't need to know that. Besides, Granger wouldn't be leaving for a while, so there would be no instances where she would miss her. Not that she _did. _Of course not.

O-O-O-O-O

A/N: Finally! Haha.  
Thanks to everyone who reads! The 'Montague' mentioned early on (the guard) is Graham Montague, a Slytherin Quidditch captain for those who might wonder. Sorry about the long break between this chapter and the last. There will likely be more long breaks between chapters, because school's started again, and that's always the main focus!

Oh! Did anyone pick up on the Sherlock reference I threw in? :P

Extra thanks to:

Lady for following me :)  
Koffeejinx for following :)  
DaughterofColdHarbour for following and reviewing :)  
soccergirlx for favouriting :)  
clj667 for following :)  
slytherinenigma for favouriting and following :)  
ameliajames5678 for following :)  
IllegitimatePrincess for favouriting and following the story and me, as well as reviewing :D  
lealbee for following :)  
mrs. elektra akasha Malfoy for favouriting


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Remembering What Brought it Around

That night, Hermione dreamt of the night she'd gotten her mark, and the morning after, when she was arrested. It had been one of the best days of her life, but the morning after had been one of the worst. Just thinking about it made her cringe in her sleep.

O-O-O-O-O

**FLASHBACK**

Smoothing back her curly brown hair she checked her reflection in the mirror. The Dark Lord would accept nothing less than perfection, she knew that already. But that wasn't the only thought running through her head. _Why on earth was she doing this? _She knew the answer, of course, but it was a terrible one. He had allowed her here simply because she proved her _want _to be a Death Eater. Unfortunately, even though she did want this before, she was regretting it more and more each minute. Minutely more, though. She still did want this more than anything. And she had planned _every possible _scenario, and still couldn't know for sure if she would make it out alive. For all she knew, they were going to torture her into insanity. _Thank Merlin Bellatrix is in Azkaban. _

"Ready, mudblood?" That was Lucius. He had become a good friend over the days she had been invited. She smiled – no – smirked – at him, before drawling a quick "Obviously". Of course, he couldn't have actually expected anything different. She was _here _because she was ready, and ready she had to be for the rest of her days… _or else… _She probably could have entrusted Lucius with her plan, but she didn't trust him as much as she would have to before divulging that information.

His eyes locked on hers for a brief second, and she saw that he didn't want her to go through with this. In hindsight, she probably should have realised that it was all a terrible idea. There was no end to the possibilities of how she _could have done better, _or, she could have _not ended up in Azkaban. _Of course, that was all wistful thinking now. She didn't know that yet, though. _And she thought she was safe. _

"Hey! Granger!" That was Lucius again. He snapped her out of her daydreaming haze, and motioned for her to exit the room. Just as she was about to leave the room, he grabbed her arm. Part of her heart bet faster, yet another part of it was warning her. _It's Lucius Malfoy, he's so much older than you. _But they were all fruitful, as he only wished to stop her going out without a mask on. _Her mask. _That thought made her smile inwardly. _That's not the only reason she was smiling, though. _

Impulsively, she reached out and cupped his cheek. He looked surprised for a split second, before composing himself. She kissed him lightly. That was all it took for both of them to notice that nothing happened. _Nothing. She didn't like him. _He ruffled her hair slightly, before charming it to keep in place. The mask went on, and she was unrecognisable.

She tried her best to walk confidently, and she succeeded. A quick glance around the circle of people, before she strode before the Dark Lord, and bowed. She offered her arm in sacrifice, and he accepted.

"Morsmordre!" Her arm burned with furious pain, but it was all worth it for her master. She let the pain consume her, fill her, complete her. The only way the Dark Lord would ever accept her was if she fought through the pain.

"I live to serve my lord."

"We shall see just how much you would give up for me," there was a pause before the Dark Lord pulled off her mask, "Hermione Granger."

O-O-O-O-O

Severus Snape was confused. Not a first, but he hadn't been confused in a very long time. After seeing Hermione Granger at the Death Eater meeting, and seeing her being marked he had been contemplating whether or not to inform Albus Dumbledore and, to an extent, Ronald Weasley and Harry Potter. He decided against it, he would question Granger when she came into Potions today. He had Gryffindor-Slytherin Potions first up, just as well, or he might chicken out. After the lesson finished he kept Hermione behind.

"Yes, sir?"

"Show me your left arm." Hermione's shocked face gave away completely what was under her shirt, yet he needed proof. With one shaky hand, she pulled back her shirt sleeve. Sure enough there it was. The Dark Mark. One of the lightest people he knew, turned dark.

"Sir-"

"Come with me."

"Now!" He shouted after she hadn't moved.

"But sir-"

"I said now!" She scurried after him, through the floo and straight to Dumbledore's office.

"To what do I owe this pleasure Severus? Miss Granger?" Albus looked surprised, but managed to hide it well.

"Miss Granger. Your arm please." Hermione reluctantly held it out, and Albus looked even more shocked, if that was possible. But past that, he looked angry. The twinkle in his eyes gone completely, and his features hardened. Hermione visibly gulped and looked at the ground. _She regretted it even more now than before. _

"Severus, I think you should leave. Miss Granger and I clearly have a lot to talk about." Severus nodded his head and left, noting the wards that went up after he left. Clearly he did not need to know what was being said. Time to make a visit to the Gryffindor common room.

O-O-O-O-O

Harry and Ron were waiting for Hermione to come back from the Potions Master's office in the common room. It had been longer than what was expected, but not so much longer as to be afraid on behalf of their friend. When the portrait finally swung open however, it was not to their friends smiling face but the snarling face of Professor Snape.

"Potter. Weasley. Come with me." Exchanging glances they scurried after the already departing professor.

"Granger is a Death Eater." Harry stared at his teacher in disbelief, and Ron began chuckling, but after seeing the stern look on Snape's face stopped at once.

"Are you serious, sir?" Harry winced at Ron's idiocy before sending a questioning look of his own at Snape.

"Yes. She is with the Headmaster at present, and will most likely be imprisoned in Azkaban."

"Can we see her? Now, I mean? I'd like to know why she would... you know... um turn on us and the light... If that's okay sir."

"You may."

Albus Dumbledore was shocked at first when he saw Severus come in with Hermione Granger of all people, and his astonishment didn't stop there. Hermione Granger, a Death Eater? And if she was one, who's to say Potter and Weasley aren't as well? After a few seconds deliberation he flooed the Minister. A few Auror's were on the way to take one third of the Golden Trio away to Azkaban.

A knock on his door sounded and Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley walked in. The ginger's eyes lit up at the sight of Hermione still there, but when she scowled at them all sign of happiness was gone.

"'Mione?" Scowl still present on her face she snarled at them,

"Weasley. Potter. Still as unable to process simple facts I see. Want my help?" She rolled up her sleeve and watched the sadness form in her former friends' eyes. The sadness made her feel triumphant, serves the damn boy-who-lived and his little blood traitor friend right, but with all that said and done she didn't feel triumphant, she felt sad.

The idiot Gryffindors were ushered quickly out the Headmasters door before she could do something so idiotic and so undeniably Gryffindor like killing her friends. No, she was more subtle than that, she would never do something to endanger her ranking with the Dark Lord. Certainly not when she was just marked.

**END FLASHBACK**

O-O-O-O-O

When she woke up, her eyes were damp. It wasn't the marking, or the reliving of the pain involved, it was the remembering that she'd lost the only friends she'd ever had. And reliving that hurt her, even though she would deny that for the rest of her life. She brushed them away angrily; she could make new friends. Better friends. Ones that didn't only like her for her brains. She heard the scuffling that told her Bellatrix was awake, and hurriedly wiped her eyes free of any stray tears. When she was lowering her arms, a hand reached out and grabbed it. Glancing into Bellatrix's brown eyes, she saw no emotion.

O-O-O-O-O

"You okay?" Bellatrix asked quietly, then mentally kicked herself for sounding so sympathetic. Granger blinked her red-rimmed eyes up at her, before nodding.  
"Yeah. I'm fine." Bellatrix took her hand off Granger's arm, before standing up and spinning around. She paced back and forth along the back wall, thinking to herself. Azkaban was making her far too weak and _nice _for her liking, and she wanted it to stop. She wanted to get out of the prison, but she knew her Lord had planning to do before breaking her, and all the other Death Eaters that were also in Azkaban, out.

Besides, he wanted to capture as many Mudbloods as he could as a reward for all those who went to Azkaban before he revealed his revival. She was looking forward to that reward; she hadn't tortured someone in _forever, _and she missed it. She missed it a lot.

O-O-O-O-O

Hermione sat on the floor, watching Bellatrix pace back and forth. She was confused. Why would Bellatrix care how she was? And why did Bellatrix speak so _softly_? She was a convicted murderer, they didn't speak kindly! So what was Bellatrix doing talking to her that way? And what was she thinking about while she was pacing back and forth? Was she thinking to herself about how her voice sounded? About how she had been nice to someone with the kind of heritage she had? But Bellatrix hadn't seemed to hold her parents against her _too _much. She'd only slammed her into the concrete floor… and she hadn't even gotten a concussion from it! So that probably wasn't it.

Maybe she was thinking about Narcissa Malfoy? They were sisters, weren't they? Maybe she missed having her sister around? But no, she would be used to not having her sister around, right? She'd been in Azkaban, away from her sister, for a while now, right? So that's not it…

Maybe she was thinking about _her_? But no, that wouldn't make any sense. Why would _Bellatrix Lestrange _be pacing back and forth, thinking about _Hermione Granger_? So that thought went away quick.

She began to do some thinking of her own. About when Voldemort would be breaking all the Death Eaters free. He'd mentioned something after her marking, now if only she could remember... He'd said something about Bellatrix, the Department of Mysteries, and Dumbledore, she thought, but that wasn't important yet, so she kept thinking. But it didn't come to her.

O-O-O-O-O

She stopped pacing when she realised that Granger's eyes had been following her walking for the past few minutes. Twirling around on her foot, she trained a glare at the young girl, only to be met with eyes full of questioning as a response. Raising her eyebrows, she continued her pacing, halting after a few steps when Granger spoke up.  
"Why are you pacing?" Spinning around, again, she tossed her hair, before replying matter-of-factly;  
"I'm thinking. Of course." Continuing her pacing, Granger kept asking questions.  
"Yes, of course, but about what?"  
"About when our Lord will break us all out!" She said without stopping walking. She could feel the eyes following her on her back, so she sat down. Her feet were beginning to hurt from the stone floor, anyway.

O-O-O-O-O

When Bellatrix had told her what she was thinking about, she felt slightly disappointed, which confused her. Why was she disappointed because Bellatrix was thinking about Voldemort breaking them out? Shouldn't she be happy because of that? That was a good thought. But apparently her mind didn't like it much… Hmm…

She noticed that Bellatrix had stopped walking, and had sat down again, but she was too caught up in _yelling at her mind _to notice that Bellatrix had trained her glare on Hermione, and was studying her curiously. If she had been paying very close attention, she would have realised that it wasn't completely a glare. There was a glint of _something _in her gaze that made her face look more approachable. No telling what that was, and it disappeared too fast for anyone to properly notice it, but it had been there.

O-O-O-O-O

A/N: New update! Yay! So, that didn't take nearly as long as I thought it would… And this is the longest chapter by a long shot, so I guess I'm just amazing ;)

Anyway, thanks to IllegitimatePrincess for suggesting that the marking would do better in a flashback!

And… *drumroll* extra thanks to:

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	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The Feeling I Can't Like

Since Hermione had asked what Bellatrix had been thinking about three days ago, they hadn't spoken since. It wasn't them ignoring each other, they were both just caught up in their thinking about nothing in particular. Hermione had been having flashbacks to her time with her parents, before Hogwarts, to her time with her friends, at Hogwarts, to her time in Dumbledore's office, when she'd been expelled. Well, she assumed she'd been expelled. They'd never actually said it. It was probably implied.

She was also thinking a lot about the night of her marking. Even after she'd planned for every possible outcome of that night, she hadn't covered all of the possible outcomes. She hadn't planned on regretting it. Regretting the murder's that she'd witnessed, the injuries that she had caused. Regretting getting caught. But what she regretted the most was her friends' pain. _That she'd caused. On purpose. _And while she'd liked it at the time, and felt proud of it at times, there times like these were she just regretted everything about her friends'. And she would remember the good times, and the bad, and regret the good more than the bad. Because the bad was better than the good.

O-O-O-O-O

Bellatrix had been thinking about Hermione lately. She had seen the focussed expressions on her cell-mate's face during the days, and her tear-stained face during the night when she thought Bellatrix was asleep. Sometimes, she felt sympathetic, and wanted Hermione to stop being so sad, but other times, she just felt annoyed at her. Idiotic young girl, who needs sadness? And why are you sad when you are marked by your Lord? She got it, though. She knew she had the same expressions on her face during the day, though she didn't cry by night. She wasn't the crying type, and she never had been. But she was the comforting type, though she never seemed it. She'd stopped caring about petty humans a long time ago. But she still felt the inklings of her wanting to help at times. When she would see Narcissa crying because she was scared for Draco, or when she would see the Death Eaters children's indecisiveness when it came to being marked. She would want to tell them of the honour of being a servant to their Lord, of the greatness they would feel whenever called, because their Lord _wanted them. _

But, of course, she would banish the thoughts with a glare at her subconscious, and her bitter self would return. Her Lord liked her bitter self better. She heard a quiet moan of sadness from where her cell-mate was lying asleep. Having a nightmare, it would seem. And she felt the old feelings of caring return to her mind. And it wasn't so easy to banish them this time. Hermione let out another moan, and she had to focus herself on not going over there. _She's a silly little girl. She's a Death Eater, she can control her own emotions. I'm a Death Eater. I'm bitter. I'm uncaring. I hate mudbloods. This girl is a mudblood. I hate her. I missed her when she was at trial. I hate her. She looks so frail lying there. I'm a Death Eater. I don't care._

Deep down though, she did care. But she would never admit that, and it was rather deep down.

O-O-O-O-O

Hermione was having a nightmare about Harry and Ro- Potter and Weasley. They were yelling at her, and that shouldn't be enough to break her, and it was, for some stupid reason. They were telling her that they were faking the relationship the entire time. Felt sorry for her. That she was Death Eater scum, nothing more. And that hurt, rather a lot, even though they were only ex-friends. They had been her friends at one point. It also hit her hard because she knew it was true. She knew she was just Death Eater scum, and that had been her choice not too long ago. It still was her choice, and she wouldn't go back and not become a Death Eater, because she wouldn't have realised that Lucius Malfoy was a nice guy, Bellatrix Lestrange was human, and that the Dark Lord had it right. Muggle-borns were weaker than everyone else, and she was living proof. Not magic-wise, and her Lord knew that blood had no effect on magic, but emotion-wise. She was unable to control her emotions the way the pure-bloods could. That made her weak, and she hated it.

Her two ex-friends had begun throwing hexes towards her, and she thrashed about in her sleep, trying to move her body away so the hexes would miss, but they wouldn't, and it brought her to tears. She was stuck to the floor by her torso, and could only move her arms and legs. She tried to hit out at her attackers, but her arms were never long enough. They got shorter and shorter, she had to reach farther and farther to reach them, but she couldn't reach them.

Some part of her registered that a warm hand had placed itself on her palm, and was stroking it softly, calming her. Another hand was on the back of her head, smoothing her hair which had gone into disarray during her nightmare. The nightmare stopped, and she breathed heavily, finally awake. The hands pulled away, and she opened her tear-stained eyes to find Bellatrix sitting next to her on the cold stone floor. She reached out feeble fingers and touched the back of her hand.  
"Thanks." She said, her voice shaking so slightly it was barely noticeable. Bellatrix sneered at her.  
"You were disrupting my sleep," she said coolly, "I can't sleep when you're making noises and thrashing about. Don't do it again." She stood up, and walked over to the corner where she always slept.  
"Thanks anyway." Hermione said softly.

O-O-O-O-O

"Thanks anyway." A voice said softly to her back, and she very nearly smiled, but stopped herself. Weak little mudblood. I did that simply because I wanted to sleep. But she knew that she did it because she didn't want Hermione to be in pain. And this wasn't the same way she felt when she cared. No, this was more than that. And Bellatrix didn't like it. She didn't like it at all.

O-O-O-O-O

A/N: New update! :D So… Bellatrix is finally calling Hermione 'Hermione' in her mind! That's not all, though! Heh. Thanks for reading :D

Extra thanks to:

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	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Visitors

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft was in uproar over Hermione's arrest. Dumbledore had addressed it the morning after she had been taken. Everyone was surprised, and everyone assumed that this meant that Harry and Ron were Death Eaters as well. Ron in particular had been taunted and goaded into supposedly 'revealing' the fact that he was a Death Eater. Seeing both of their bare arms didn't discourage everyone as much as the two had hoped, but the random attacks had stopped, even if the whispering hadn't.

"I want to visit Hermione," Ron said one morning to Harry. He expected Harry's temper to flare again, but he just nodded and agreed.  
"Yeah," he said, "See if we can get some information out of her about Voldemort?"  
"Something like that," Ron murmured, and the two set off for Dumbledore's office.

O-O-O-O-O

"Hello, Mr Potter, Mr Weasley." Harry had noticed that Dumbledore had stopped calling him by his first name since Hermione had been taken away. Feeling his temper flare, he looked away.  
"What can I do for you two?" He said, shoving away the paperwork and putting on his glasses.  
"Well…"  
"Ah, I see," he said inquisitively, "you want to visit Ms Granger."  
"Er, yes," Harry said, "we would." Nodding quickly, Dumbledore called Fawkes to him and stroked the fiery bird thoughtfully.  
"I don't see why not," he said finally, after what the two teenagers felt like had been eternity.

O-O-O-O-O

The trip had been less than delightful. Harry glared at the captain of the boat as he stepped of, stumbling slightly in his distraction. The man smirked and led them both to the entrance, before walking the short walk back to the less than sturdy boat. They were collected by another guard, who led them silently to the cell. There was a large stone door, which the guard opened using a flick of the wand, and past the door were the bars of the cell. Two figures were each curled up into a ball on opposite sides of the room, but both sprang up instantly awake when the cell door clicked closed behind Harry. While originally unidentifiable, the two boys immediately recognised who other the figure was.  
"Bellatrix Lestrange!" Ron yelped, suddenly looking like he wanted to be anywhere but there.

O-O-O-O-O

Rolling her eyes at the idiot redhead's fear, she drawled "Yes. Would you like a certificate, or will applause be enough?" He blushed the colour of his hair and moved to hide himself behind Potter.  
"Hermione…" she heard him growl, "why are you sharing a cell with this _bitch_?"  
"Yeah!" Weasley jumped in, "this is the woman who gets off on torturing people! People like you! Muggleborns!" Bellatrix looked back, and saw Hermione chewing her lip and looking like she was trying not to attack them for their being obtuse.  
"You're a hypocrite!" Potter yelled, "a hypocrite!"  
"These are the people that want to _kill _Harry!" Ron yelled, leering forward to hover over Hermione, as he was several inches taller by this point, and Hermione was cowering.  
"What?" Potter said when Hermione didn't say anything, "have you been on their side from the beginning, plotting to kill me?"  
"Or would you have killed him yourself, if Snape hadn't told revealed you?" This surprised Bellatrix; she'd always assumed that Severus was as loyal as herself to their Lord. Glancing back to Hermione again, she was caught off guard by the next remark thrown.  
"Or are you having sex with Voldemort?" This brought Bellatrix out of her passive mood, and she let out an insane cackle. All of the children present, and the guard that was still standing in the entrance room, all stared at her. Even Hermione stopped staring at the ground to look at her.  
"You're a hypocrite!" Weasley said, falling back on his past argument, after snapping out of his shocked mood, "A fucking hypocrite! Are you going to murder yourself after killing your family, and your friends? Or are you going to pretend that you're a pureblood and marry yourself off to Malfoy? I guess it doesn't matter, does it? I'll murder you myself after me and Harry win the war!"  
"Ron…" Hermione spoke softly, her voice breaking with her emotion, but they weren't hearing it. And neither was Bellatrix, apparently. Hearing just how her emotions blended in that moment, she shrieked with laughter, drawing all eyes to her again.  
"You're a fool!" She called, "you're a fool if you think _you're _winning! Not with the soldiers _we _have!" She spoke the last sentence before looking back at Hermione. That seemed to snap Hermione out of her timidness, as she called insults. They were weak insults, very weak, focusing mainly on Potter's crush on Weasley's sister. Bella would have to teach her how to use weaknesses to win battles, as she was sure that Hermione knew all their weak spots. Bella taunted them, speaking of how she'd killed Sirius the year previous, and how he'd never loved Potter enough to even stay alive in his presence.

Eventually, they left.

O-O-O-O-O

When her old friends had left, she allowed herself to sit back down on the cold floor. It didn't seem hard to her anymore; not now that she'd gotten used to it. She heard Bellatrix's shoes smack on the ground, before feeling the air surrounding her move as she settled down next to her, and a hand was placed on top of hers. It was cold, but that was to be expected, and yet it still felt like it was meant to be there. Bellatrix squeezed her hand, before moving it away. Maybe it was the fact that the only one who cared enough to comfort her was _Bellatrix Lestrange, _or maybe it was just the fact that those two were the only friends she'd ever had, or something entirely different, but she began to cry quietly. A hand snaked around her waist, and she turned in to the warm rags, wrapping her arms around Bellatrix. Bellatrix stiffened, before relaxing into the hug.

O-O-O-O-O

AN: Yay! Update! :D Thanks for reading, and sorry this took so long – I really have no excuse.  
Question: Do you want Hermione to kill Snape when she's let out, or would you rather Voldemort killed him, or he doesn't die, or…?

Extra thanks to:  
Darkshadow-lord for reviewing :)  
The guest that reviewed :)  
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	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Closer

Her cold hands easily touched each other behind Hermione's back, and she pulled her closer, hearing the quiet sniffles lessen. Removing one hand, she pulled her ragged cloak around the two of them, before placing her hand back where it was. Hermione pulled back for a second, and smiled, before resuming the hug once more.

O-O-O-O-O

She woke up in Bellatrix's arms. The two of them were lying together on the floor, and though she was initially embarrassed, she found that she was actually quite comfortable. She'd long since gotten used to the cold that the floor gave off – and after all, it wasn't really that cold with Bellatrix wrapped around her. Or was she wrapped around Bellatrix?

They were both wrapped around each other, she decided. She heard the keys clinking to open the cell door and hurriedly pulled herself away from Bellatrix, going to stand over by the wall. Breakfast was pushed through the bars, and she immediately sat down and began to eat her portion. Dry porridge, tasting mildly of bananas.

O-O-O-O-O

Bellatrix sighed inwardly when she woke up and Hermione was on the other side of the cell. _A dream, then. It wouldn't be the first. _  
"'Morning," she muttered, pulling her bowl of slop towards her.  
"Good morning," came the swift reply. "I'm sorry for, uh, wrapping myself around you last night." No eye contact. _Not a dream. _  
"I can't curse you for it without incurring the Dark Lord's wrath for killing one of his, so don't expect revenge." _That's fine. Do you want to do it again? Your arms are so lovely to be in. _

O-O-O-O-O  
She finally looked up and saw Bellatrix laboriously spooning food into her mouth with those sluggish movements that she knew all too well. She, too, experienced them, though not nearly as much as the older woman. It was a side effect of the Dementors – Azkaban in general, really – and they would hopefully go away once they got out. The Dark Lord must be coming soon, she deliberated. And not just for her and Bellatrix, since she knew full well there were a great many other Death Eaters trapped. With the war picking up, there was no way the Dark Lord would wait much longer to get all of his army free.

She looked back at Bellatrix, and wondered what thoughts consumed her. _Probably the same as mine, _she thought, absent-mindedly letting her eyes travel her body. Thin, though prison would do that to you.

Hermione suddenly felt the strangest urge to hug her once more, and that darned Gryffindorness caused her to scoot over and wrap her arms around the witch in what surely must be the most awkward hug that anyone had ever experienced. But Bellatrix didn't seem to mind, simply finishing off her food, and turning to look at Hermione.

O-O-O-O-O

_What is she doing? Should I hug her back? _ She did, putting her arms around Hermione's waist and standing up, taking Hermione with her.

The two made eye contact, and it was so blisteringly passionate that Bella averted her eyes downwards, to Hermione's nose. _Alright, maybe a bit lower than her nose, _Bella admitted to herself, looking at the chapped lips in front of her. She was hypnotised, leaning in closer, and so was Hermione, she realised.

They were close, so close, and she wanted to be closer. _What am I doing? _She frantically asked herself in the second before their lips touched. They were kissing. It hadn't been sudden at all, but her thoughts were consumed with the fact that it was too soon, too soon, too soon. But it wasn't. Hands were placed over hers. Warm, warm, warm. _What was wrong with her? Why was she acting like a schoolgirl with a crush? _That made her remember that Hermione was just a schoolgirl. A Gryffindor. But also a Death Eater. Unsure of what to think, but knowing that she wanted to keep kissing her for forever, she didn't stop.

O-O-O-O-O

"Luciussss…"  
"Yes, my lord?" He asked, stepping forward and bowing to his master, keeping eyes to the ground.  
"I think it is time to break our dear friends out. Let them all know of our plan by tomorrow evening. Dismissed." Lucius nodded and rose. _To Azkaban, _he thought. But it was late, and he was tired. He would go tomorrow.

He visited Bella and Hermione last. They both looked up at him, surprise and eagerness cleverly masked in both of their eyes.  
"It's time."

O-O-O-O-O

AN:  
Updateroonie, yay! xD Sorry for the super duper long wait… *shifty eyes* and the short chapter… So they'll break out next chapter… I can't wait! Thanks for reading :3 AND OHMYGOD THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU for the support! Seriously, I can't thank you all enough!

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